The largest owner and operator of shopping malls in Vietnam has received a fresh US$100 million investment from a consortium led by a U.S. fund, in one of the country’s largest investments by a private equity firm.

A follow-on minority investment of approximately $100 million has been given by a consortium led by an affiliate of Warburg Pincus to Vincom Retail, the retail unit of Vingroup, Vietnam’s leading property firm, the Vietnamese company announced Monday.

Warburg Pincus is a leading global private equity firm focused on growth investing, whereas Vingroup is the largest publicly-traded real estate developer and one of the largest companies by market capitalization in Vietnam.

The latest funding brings the total investment in Vincom Retail to date by the Warburg Pincus consortium to $300 million, making it one of the largest investments by a private equity firm ever in Vietnam, according to Vingroup.

The Warburg Pincus consortium made the first investment of $200 million to help build out Vincom Retail in May 2013.

Vincom Retail, the largest shopping mall operator in Vietnam, currently has 20 malls in operation or under development.

The existing prime assets of Vincom Retail include Vincom Dong Khoi and Vincom Thu Duc in Ho Chi Minh City; Vincom Ha Long in the northern province of Quang Ninh; Vincom Ngo Quyen in the central city of Da Nang; and Vincom Ba Trieu, Vincom Long Bien, Vincom Mega Mall Royal City and Vincom Mega Mall Times City in Hanoi.

The Vincom Retail malls are home to more than 700 domestic and international brands, with many major tenants, according to Vingroup.

Vincom Retail has more than tripled the size of its portfolio since it first partnered with Warburg Pincus two years ago, according to Vingroup CEO Duong Thi Mai Hoa.

“The follow-on investment by the Warburg Pincus Consortium is a vote of confidence from our investors in our strong performance to date and our long-term vision for both Vincom Retail and Vietnam,” Hoa said.

Vincom Retail is accelerating completion of its under-construction malls and developing broader retail platforms, such as VinMart, VinDS, VinFashion and VinPro, so the fresh investment will be of great help, she added.

Warburg Pincus, meanwhile, is so pleased with the growth and performance of Vincom Retail since the initial investment that it was willing to provide the new funding, according to managing director Jeffrey Perlman.

“We look forward to continuing to work closely with the Vingroup and Vincom Retail management teams to build the preeminent retail franchise in Vietnam,” he said.

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